The Phoenix
by Dusk LockHeart
Summary: Even Archangels need a backup plan. This is Michael's.
1. Prologue

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The Phoenix

**-dusklockheart-**

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**Author's Note**: Yeah, I love Legion, don't ask, really, don't. I've watched the damn movie like three times like already, it's a record for me.(I'm a loser, I know.)(At least I admit it.) Yeah, I know I mixed the myth and my own personal desires for the phoenix to have.(Shut up.)

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Legion or it's characters, however, I do own my original character, Tiffany(Phoenix), and this plot. Thank you.

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**Prologue**

_"The phoenix, in myth and Christianity, was described to be an eagle-like bird with large and beautiful wings that would be covered with fire. The phoenix was said to be able to walk among the humans, appearing in human flesh. It's lifetime was said to be about five hundred to a thousand years. When it sensed it's life span was coming an end, it would set itself on fire and burn to ashes. Within a three days time, the phoenix would raise from its ashes and be reborn again to live out another five hundred to a thousand years. However, as we all should know, the phoenix was simply used as a symbol, in Christian belief, for Christ's resurrection. I'm perfectly sure there are absolutely no large birds on fire being sighted flying over the White House." _

_"There were UFOs seen flying over the White House!"_

_"Those were UFOs, Bobby, not a phoenix."_

--

When I was a little girl, I was told that all the dreams and fantasy we had grown up with were lies and there was just this life. Nothing was real, the only thing that existed was humanity and the ignorance surrounding it. Mickey Mouse wasn't real. Santa Clause wasn't real.

God wasn't real.

All that was and would ever be, was right in front of us. I guess that's probably why a lot of kids my age got drunk on a daily basis and smoked drugs like there was no tomorrow. It was all because the world believed there was no tomorrow. Everything we could ever possibly know was this life.

Whenever someone asked what was beyond this life, after we die and we're six feet under(or in the bottom of a lake), depended on who you asked.

Christianity and Judaish believed in a Heaven that was ruled by God who had created us and shown us His affection by gifting us with His eternal mercy and ever love. In Hinduism, they believe that people are reborn as a completely different person. In Muslim, God judges whether or not you followed what He asked of you. Buddhists believe they are reincarnated until they reach enlightenment. An atheist would say you just stop existing, you just disappear.

My question is; Who's right?

I mean, there has been one who has the correct answer isn't there? But they all can't be right, can they?

After a while, people started getting tried of all this bullshit. They just stopped believing in religion and moved on to living in the moment. I guess religion kinda went out of style; just like dreams. Once people begin to feel bored of something, they toss it out.

That's probably why teenagers rebelled. At first, the amount of teenagers drinking or taking drugs were under control. As the years progressed, the government discovered that the number of teenagers drinking, taking drugs, or both was almost to eighty percent, that was when they decided to take action.

Now, if a teenager was caught, or even suspected to be drinking or taking drugs, the lucky ones would get a short trial. The not-so-lucky ones were simply sentenced as adults and thrown into prisons.

My mother once told me that if I was ever caught and put in jail, I'd never see her again. As a kid, I never wanted to be separated from my parents, not even for an hour. And that scared me. I can't even begin to tell you how many sleepless nights I had because I believed that if I feel asleep, I'd wake up to find my parents gone.

As time went on, though, I began more and more distant from my parents. Suddenly, having my parents taken away for a few days, even a few weeks, sounded pretty good.

I sent more time with my friends outside then I did with my family. It wasn't because I loved them less, no. It was because the new baby had become a huge handful. Mom and dad seemed to focus their attention solely on the baby and not towards me and my older brother.

I suppose that's how Frank felt like when I was born.

I was actually shocked when Frank's 18th birthday came and mom and dad didn't realize it at all. They didn't wish him a good birthday or anything. They just spent the day looking after the baby, not even seeming to care they missed Frank's special day at all.

That evening I went out and bought a cake for him. We ate the entire cake by ourselves in his room that night. Mom and dad still downstairs taking care of the baby.

I cried for Frank. I did. I held onto him for the remainder of the night.

The next morning mom and dad didn't notice a thing. To me, it seemed as if they didn't care. For me or for Frank.

As much as I saw it, I didn't want to believe it. I knew mom and dad had forgotten Frank's birthday, but somewhere deep inside of me, I silently hoped that they would remember my birthday and surprise Frank with a new car and tell him that they were just waiting for the right time to catch him off guard.

Months went by, my birthday was just two days away. I hid in my silence from my parents, hoping.

My actual birthday arrived. I had woken up and found a small cupcake with a single candle sticking out of the top. My heart lifted. When I picked the cupcake I saw there was a note underneath it. My heart fell when I read it. It said; _Happy Birthday Little Sis, -- Frank_.

I did appreciate that Frank had done that, but, I wished it had been mom and dad who'd done it.

That night, I didn't come out of my room at all, hoping mom and dad would burst into the room holding a large cake between them with fifteen candles on top with flames all set to be blown out. After they would take me downstairs to where the entire living room would be decorated with different colored streamers and a billion balloons floating around. All my friends would be there, all where party hats and playing birthday games. And once I'd arrive, everyone would turn towards me as mom and dad lifted the cake to my face. I'd blow out the candles and everyone would start clapping and cheering. Mom would whip out her camera and take pictures, Frank would be beside me standing with me in the pictures with the both of us smiling.

And the baby would be soundlessly asleep in around room.

After nine went by, my hopes became my disappointments. At ten, Frank sneaked into my room with a cake that said '_Get Well Soon, Betty!_'. He smiled shyly and said it was the only one left. I didn't complain. Together we ate my cake. After breaking out a deck of UNO, playing until one in the morning, Frank went back into his own room.

I laid there in my bed and thought; _Where did it all go wrong?What changed? _

And I cried.


	2. Annoyance

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The Phoenix

**-dusklockheart-**

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**Author's Note**: Ah yes, I didn't mention this before but in the prologue, Tiffany's only like 10-11. Kathy's like a few months old to one year old. Frank's 17-18. Here, Tiffany's 15, Kathy's 4, and Frank's 22. Hope that cleared your questions.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Legion or it's characters(damn), however, I do own my original character, Tiffany(Phoenix), and this plot. Thank you.

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**Chapter One**

**Annoyance**

_"__Believe you can and you're halfway there."_ -- Theodore Roosevelt

--

"Are we there yet?" Kathy, who was no longer a baby but at the age of four now, asked for about the millionth time already. I swear if she asks that one more time I was going to shoot myself. It didn't help that the AC broke down too. How lovely.

"Not yet, honey. We'll be there soon." Mom answered then turned to dad. "John, we're completely lost. What are we going to do?" She whispered, glancing over her shoulder to Kathy who was now laughing and clapping with joy.

Yeah fine mom, don't bother worrying about the other two living organisms in this car you personally gave birth to. That's just peachy. I thought bitterly.

See, mom and dad thought it would be a great idea to take Kathy on a trip to tour New York in a mini van.

'Course since they still had Frank and me, we had to come. Trust me, if I had a choice, I wouldn't be here. But seeing as I'm not legal yet, I can't. I still have three years to go, well actually, just two and a half years but it's still a long time to wait.

It still didn't help that mom and dad refused to acknowledge my brother's or my existence in the family ever since Kathy happened.

The problem was in this 'family' vacation, dad had decided to try to be a hotshot and drive like a madman down the highway at like a hundred and twenty miles per hour.

We almost crashed into six cars, two trucks, and a few good random people just innocently trying to walk on the edge of the road. To boast, we cut off like a good forty or fifty cars. In his fit of insanity, dad missed the exit we were suppose to take and he led his all the way into the middle of nowhere.

This is turning to be the best family trip ever, don't you think so?

Back to reality, Frank and I were simply sitting in the back playing a game of 'I Spy'.

Kathy was making 'aw's' and 'ohs' sounds every time we passed a dome of sand.

Mom was yelling at dad for getting us lost.

Dad was protesting against her saying he knew exactly where we were going(which is bullshit).

"Oh John, there's a diner right there, lets just stop there to ask for directions and get some food, I'm pretty sure the kids are hungry." She looked over to once again, Kathy. I know she said 'kids' but her eyes said she only cared about Kathy being fed.

"Frank, are you hungry?" Well someone had to ask, otherwise it just never be asked.

"Nah, not really, just...tired." I couldn't tell if he meant about being physically tired or emotionally tired. Or maybe both. I wasn't sure.

"Fine, but lock the doors. I don't want our car stolen thank you very much." And with that, dad pulled over to the part gas station/diner.

While mom stepped out and opened the middle door to get Kathy, Frank and I climbed out of the car together. Granted I almost tripped but Frank caught me before I landed on my face. Outside was dusty and sand was flying everywhere. I covered my eyes so sand wouldn't land in them. I turned to the name of the diner, Paradise Falls.

That's a name you want to put up to attract customers to your business.

Besides the name, the place looked run down and just plainly not taken care of. The windows were dirty and appeared yellow. The wood looked as if it would collapse at any moment.

Not somewhere I'd want to eat.

Once mom had gotten Kathy out of the car, dad locked all the windows and doors before we made our way into the diner.

Inside, there was a man on top of a wooden box slamming his hand against a tv that looked like it belonged in a museum. Behind him was the cook I believed, with a metal hook like thing in the place of his right arm. I wondered what happened to him.

Then again, curiosity killed the cat.

In one of the crap-out stalls, a couple sat looking pretty damn pissed whispering angrily to one another. It looked like they were going to go at each others throats at any point. The woman who was way overdressed for the desert, had a freakin' fur coat on her.

Who brings a fur coat into the desert? It's too hot. She must be crazy.

A girl who looked a little older than me was at a retro music player from the 70's or 80's. The first thing I noticed about her is that her skirt was too short. If she bent down just a bit more, her ass would be sticking out.

"Hey there," the man with the metal arm said. "take a seat wherever y'all like. The specials are on the board."

He easily flipped the pancake he was cooking into the air and it landed perfectly back into his pan.

One thing was for sure; he may not have an arm but he can flip like a professional.


	3. When Old Freakin' Ladies Climb On Walls

**The Phoenix**

**-dusklockheart-**

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**Disclaimer**: I don't own Legion or its characters, however, I do own my original character, Tiffany, Kathy, and Frank.

**Author's Note**: Sorry this chapter's really really late. My Internet was down for like two f-ing weeks. Stupid Internet companies.

* * *

**Chapter Two**

**When Old Freakin' Ladies Climb On Walls**

"Want anything?" Frank whispered over to me. I shook my head. The air that polluted the diner was almost enough to make me throw up my breakfast. God forbid I actually eat something now. It would be very messy.

I glanced over to Mom and Dad at the other table. Yes, they choose to next at another table away from their other two children.

Kathy was sitting in Dad's lap while Mom was ordering pancakes for Kathy and a blueberry muffin for herself. "What about me?" Dad jokingly shouted to Mom. _What about us?_ I thought angrily. I'll admit it, I'm just a little bitter. Or maybe a bit more than 'just a little'.

"Alright, alright. He'll have a cup of coffee." Mom laughed at Dad's pout face.

"'Kay, I'll be right back with your food." The waiter guy, person, replied placing his notepad in his pocket and walked over to the cook who was already flipping the pancakes. "Percy, order." The elder man said to him, placing the notepad on the table.

The one-handed cook saluted the man as he walked to the back of the diner.

I couldn't stop staring at the cook, Percy, as he flipped with his replaced hook for a hand. It amazed me how well he could do that without an arm. Before long, Percy had my parents' orders finished. "Here you go, enjoy." And he offered a smile to them which they returned. I almost throw up but now from the smell.

Suddenly, Percy looked up at my brother and me. He smiled. "You two want something?"

"Water, please." Frank answered.

"Just water?"

"Yes please."

"Alright then." With that Percy went off to fetch the water.

"You look like you're gonna pass out." Frank whispered into my ear, careful not to let Mom or Dad overhear. I looked over to him.

"Don't I always?" I tried changing the subject. But Frank knew what I was doing. His eyes darted to Mom and Dad who were attempting to fed Kathy her pancakes and failing to do so getting pancake syrup all over their shirts. My eyes felt hot.

"Do you want to go to the bathroom?"

"I'm fine...it just," I was careful choosing my next words. "hurts a little." Frank put his arm on my back and gently starting rubbing it in a comforting motion. A minute later Percy arrived with Frank's water. He smiled at us.

"Such as a lovely young couple. Wish I could be as young as you two." That comment made both me and Frank snap our heads at Percy. He really thought we were a couple?

"Huh? Uh, no sir. We're not, I mean, she's not my girlfriend. She's my sister." You should have seen the priceless look on both Frank and Percy's faces. Frank looked absolutely disturbed at the man's outburst. Percy's face was embarrassed but I knew he didn't know.

"Oh, I-I'm very sorry. Er, sorry for the mistake." Embarrassed beyond belief, Percy walked away from table, leaving us with the glass of water and an awkward position.

"Well that was interesting." I couldn't help but let out a soft giggle. Frank rubbed the back of his head. "We shall never speak of this again, agreed?"

"Agreed." It was nice having Frank around. I honestly don't know what I would do if I ever lost him. He was the only one who truly and completely understood me. He was the only one who could make me laugh and smile. He was, no doubt, my happiness. And I'd sooner die then lose my happiness.

The door's ringing when it open slapped me back to reality and my surroundings. I turned around in the stale to see an elder lady walking in. She looked like any other edlerly old lady. White hair, hardly walking by herself, wrinkles, and a smile that reminds you of grandma who always has hard candy in her purse and who will make you homebaked goodies.

The waitress with the nametag that said 'Charlie' walked pass her."The specials are on the board." She told the old lady. She took a seat right at the table in the middle of the diner with a smile almost bigger than her face.

Charlie whipped out her notepad and pen. "I already know what I want." The old lady said before Charlie could even ask what she wanted.

"What'll it be?"

"I'll have a steak, please."

"How would you like it?"

"Rare, if you would. And water with no ice." I raised my eyebrow. Charlie went off to get her order. Who ever heard of an old lady eating a rare steak?

"She's weird." Frank whispered to me.

"Don't be rude." I elbowed his stomach.

"Hello, I'm Gladys. Gladys Foster." The woman shouted to the married couple sitting directly across from us. The wife smiled at her.

"Oh, hello Gladys, it's so nice to meet you. I'm Sandra. And this is my husband, Howard." By the look on her face, I could tell she was faking that cheerful tone.

"What a nice looking young couple." Gladys' smile never disappeared. "What brings you up to these parts?"

"We're on our way to Scottsdale, but our broke down and we're struck here until it's fixed." Gladys shook her heard lightly as if to say she understood.

"Gladys," Sandra began again. "the lines seem to be down around here, the phone and the TV and I was just wondering if might have heard something on your way up; about what's going on." Now, it became clear that she was, in fact, forcing the words out of her pretty little mouth.

"Oh, you don't have to worry about that, sweetheart. It'll all be over soon." Now that sounded eerily creepy. Just the way she said it sent shivers down my spine. Sandra must have felt the creepiness as well because she smiled almost scared like and turned away from Gladys.

Gladys then turned her attention to Frank and me. "Why hello there."

I smiled and elbowed Frank in the ribs when he didn't. "Hello, Gladys. I'm Tiffany and this is Frank." Frank only nodded and avoided eye contact with Gladys.

"It's nice to meet you, Tiffany. If you don't mind me asking, how old are you?"

"Oh, I'm fifteen now." And I thought her smile couldn't get wider.

"Ah, you're at the prime of your youth. And is Frank you're boyfriend?" I almost burst out laughing. How many more people were going to ask me if Frank's my boyfriend. I saw from the corner of my eye Frank's eye twitch a bit.

"Oh no. He's my brother."

"Oh dear, me. I'm terribly sorry, I get so confused sometimes."

"It's quite alright. You weren't the first one to think that." Gladys nodded.

"And where are your parents?"

"Oh," I cringed a bit and hoped no one noticed. "Over there." I pointed to the table to the side of us. Mom and Dad had just finished feeding Kathy who's clothes were now dirty and had to be cleaned.

"What a lovely baby sister you have."

"Thank you." I bitterly cursed in my mind. Before Gladys could ask me anymore questions, Charlie brought her her rare steak that already had bugs flying around it. I felt Frank poking me. I turned.

"What?"

"There's something not right with her."

"You're just crazy. She's just an old lady. What can she possibly do? Jump on the walls and eat us? I don't think so." I snapped at him. I mean really, an lady old? Unless she's a ninja or something, she can't do much.

"But it's gonna burn." My attention was turned back to Gladys and Charlie. What happened? Charlie looked a bit pale and taken back.

"What did you just say?"

"I said your fucking baby's gonna burn." My eyes went wide when she said that. First off, old people shouldn't curse, it just sounds wrong. Second, why the hell is Gladys saying that shit in the first place?

"Go to hell, lady." Charlie slammed down Gladys' napkins and walked off in a rush. I don't blame her either. Because that little outburst, all of the people inside of the diner were now looking directly at Gladys.

"I told you so." Frank replied glaring over to Gladys.

"Can it." Gladys became cutting into her steak smiling wider than ever.

"All those little babies are gonna burn." She sang happily. I was completely horrified. Why in the world how a sweet old lady ever say that? What the hell was wrong with Gladys?

Sandra looked absolutely disturbed at Gladys. She forced half a smile and spoke. "Gladys..."

Gladys snapped her neck around to her with a twisted, angry face on. "Shut up you stupid,fucking cunt. All you do is complain, complain, complain!" There was something seriously wrong with this lady.

"Oh shit." I noticed her teeth weren't exactly...humanoid anymore. They were sharper and more animal-like, they looked like they were made to chew down on bones and tear flesh off. My heart beatedfaster. Something inside of me told me this wasn't going to end well.

Sandra's husband immediately turned around in their stale after Gladys shouted that comment. "What?" He was in disbelief. He looked ready to attack Gladys. He got out of his stale. "What? What?" He repeated. Sandra grabbed his arm.

"Harold no..." She must have seen the teeth too because her face went completely white. Harold wasn't taking no for an answer. He pulled out of her grasp and walked over to Gladys who was staring at him as he approached.

"I don't know who the hell you think you are, but I'd like you to apologize to my-" It all happened in less than a second. Gladys leaned forward and bit into Harold's neck. Blood started flowing down his neck and Gladys released him. He fell on the floor, bleeding and shaking uncontrollably.

Gladys then looked around the diner at every single one of us. "You're all gonna die!" With that, Gladys jumped onto the table and screamed. It wasn't human. That wasn't a human scream. It was high pitched and not human in any way.

"Get down, Tiffany!" Frank pulled me down under the stale, holding me against his chest. "Fuck." He cursed. What was going on? "Kathy!" I heard my Mom yelled. Even in the mist of all this madness I still couldn't help but feel...betrayed.

Bullets fired snapped me out of my thoughts. I looked out from the stale. "Holy crap!" The freaking grandma was on the ceiling. And not only that; she was crawling like a spider with super speed. Now I knew she wasn't human at all. I immediately retreated back under the stale hugging Frank close to me. The whole fucking world has gone to hell.

"Shoot her, Jeep!" Another inhuman scream later, a gun went off and it was silent again. I shook in Frank's arms.

"You're crying." Frank whispered. And it was true. Water leaped from my eyes and slipped down my cheeks. Frank rocked me back and forward humming in my ear until the tears creased and we would have to face the outside world once more.


	4. Michael

**The Phoenix**

**-dusklockheart-**

* * *

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Legion or its characters, however, I do own my original character, Tiffany, Kathy, and Frank.

**Author's Note**: Schools sucks, Lacrosse practice is hard, teachers are cool, and fan fiction is love. Seriously though, I love all of you. Really. Sorry for any mistakes in this chapter with the movie. I haven't seen Legion for a while and my memory sucks. That's probably why I fail tests. Oh well.

* * *

**Chapter Three**

**Michael**

_"A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word, 'darkness' on the walls of his cell. "_ -- **C.S. Lewis**

Kyle finished wrapping his scarf around Howard's open bleeding neck. Even though his shaking had ceased, he was still in a state in between that place where we're half awake and half asleep. He could barely keep his eyes open as Sandra and Kyle lifted him up and practically dragged him outside of the diner with over half the diner following behind. They all packed into the van and drove off to find help for Howard.

"Tiff?"

"Yeah?"

"What the hell just happened?"

"I-I'm not sure." Frank placed his arms around me.

"Do you want to go outside? Get fresh air?" My eyes were drawn to the body of the late Gladys Foster. Her soulless eyes stared up at the ceiling and her sharp teeth showed. The smile now marked permanently on her aged face. I exhaled sharply. I didn't want to be anywhere near that lady. Even in death she scared the crap out of me. I nodded. He grabbed my arm and pulled me up.

The wind really was picking up. Outside, sand was flying everywhere. It was almost like a sandstorm. Frank and I sat against the diner's wall. In the distance was a large black cloud.

"Looks like there's a storm brewin'" For some reason, I couldn't convince myself that Frank was right and that it was storm. Hold on, we're in the middle of a desert. How often does it rain in the desert? I'm no expert on weather but I'm pretty damn sure that it's not suppose to rain in the desert out of nowhere. For some reason, I couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was going to happen.

"Hey, they're coming back." I looked up and saw that Frank was right. The van was rushing back with the black cloud seemly following them. They nearly crash into the side of a gas pump before 'parking'.

"What happened?" Frank murmured. The side door opened and Sandra and Audrey carried Howard of the car. Obliviously they had not found treatment for Howard because his neck was still bloody.

I saw Percy jump out of the door in a rush. I grabbed his arm and he turned to me with a shocked expression. "Percy! What happened?" He grabbed my shoulders and looked me in the eye.

"Ya better get your Bible; someone's gotta start praying!" With that he ran off to the diner.

"What'd he say?" Frank asked.

"I, he-, something about praying." I stumbled over my words.

Frank glanced up and his eyes went wide and the color in his face drained. "Frank-?" I followed his glaze. If my mouth could have fallen to the floor, it would have done so at that moment. The cloud that was suppose to be a 'storm' cloud had transformed into a swarm of locust.

I felt a tug on my arm and turned to see Frank's scared look. "C'mon Tiffany! We gotta get inside!" I let Frank pull me back into the diner.

Once inside, Percy and Bob put a chair in front of the door. Bob turned and glared at us. "Took ya two long enough." He lost interest in us when he notice Percy and Kyle hovering over Gladys' dead body. Seeing that woman's dead body again made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

"She's still warm. How can that be? Bitch's been dead for an hour." Bob cringed at the body. The smell had probably got to him.

"I don't care how long she's been dead! The bitch just walked on the wall!"

"I can't stand her fucking smell anymore, let's get rid of her body before something else goes wrong." Kyle looked at him as if he was crazy.

"Ya expect us to carry this bitch's body outside where there's fucking bugs waiting outside to eat us?"

"That's the plan."

"Y'all fucking crazy."

"Quit your whining and help me and Percy." Kyle complained but helped Bob and Percy anyway.

Outside, the locust had mysteriously disappeared. "Tiffany." I turned to Frank.

"Do you get the feeling-"

"That something terrible's gonna happen?" He nodded.

"It's like you can read my mind." I laughed silently. I felt a tug on my pants. Confused, I looked down. Kathy was hugging my leg and wouldn't let go. "What's wrong?" I asked trying not to sound bitter. It wasn't her fault and I knew I had to admit it.

She released her hold on my leg and held her arms in the air as if asking to be lifted. I sighed and picked her up.

She smiled brightly and wrapped her arms around my neck.

"What happened to mom and dad?" I shrugged to Frank. I turned to Kathy.

"Hey Kat, do you know where mom and dad are?" She nodded and pointed towards Bob and Kyle. They appeared to be talking to them.

"Oh." Was all Frank said. I said nothing because I didn't think I would control my anger if I had opened my mouth. First they forget about their first two borns and now they forget about Kathy? I know I'm no parent but you don't leave your four-year-old girl alone even for a second. God only knows what would have happened.

After they seemed to be done, they rushed back into the diner, forgetting all about poor Kathy.

The sound of a car appoarching pulled me back into reality. "Somebody's coming." Everyone looked up. Sure enough, a police car came driving down the road. Not very good driver either, the car couldn't stay in the same lane.

"Now what?" Bob angrily stated. He took a step towards Kyle. "Wait a sec'," Jeep turned to his father. "LAPD?" The car came sliding in. Charlie came running next to us holding her stomach. "Who's that?"

"A police man?" I asked. The driver stepped out of the car and looked over to us. He didn't fit into normal person profile, that's for sure.

Apparently, Bob wasn't in the mood for civilized conversion. He pulled out his gun, unlocked the safety, and aimed at the man. "Take one more step and I'll drop you right there!"

"Is that how you greet all your costumers?"

"Yes sir, after what we've been through you're lucky we don't shoot you now and greet you later. Now let me see 'em teeth."

The man did not respond.

"Teeth goddammit! Let me see 'em!" This time, the man did what Bob asked. His teeth were perfectly normal and had no trace of shark teeth what so ever. "Okay then."

Bob relaxed a bit but still didn't put his gun down. He approached the man slowly with his gun still pointed at him. "How about you tell us your name?"

The man stood his ground. "Michael." Upon hearing his name, something clicked. Something in the back of my mind told me Michael was connected to Gladys and to what was happening. I think Frank and Charlie had the same idea because they glanced at each other.

"Well sorry about that Michael. We had this old lady go crazy in my place. She had these teeth. Never seen anything like it. Particularly bit a man in half." I whined at the memory. I would rather forget about it.

"What are you doing out here anyway? Ya don't look like any police man I ever saw. Even one from LA." He turned to the rest of us. "That's gotta be it, right? I mean who the hell be crazy enough to steal a cop car?" Bob laughed until he saw the serious expression on Michael's face.

The man turned his face to the road where he had just rode from and slowly turned back to Bob.

"You don't know, do you?" Frank placed a hand on my shoulder. For some reason, everyone took a step closer to the man as if wanting to hear what he had to say. "Don't know what?"

"We don't know anything. Nothing works. The tv, the radio, the phone." After a second of staring at Charlie, Michael took a step forward. "I'm running out of time." Bob jumped and blocked his way. He pointed the gun back at Michael.

"Hold on there, fella. You better start talking or you can just get the hell outta here." Bob, being caught off guard, had his gun taken from him by Michael. In less than a second, Michael pointed the gun directly at Bob's forehead.

Bob's high and mighty act dropped completely. Now he looked scared and stared at the man. "Hold on." Kyle whipped out his revolver and pointed it at Michael.

"Hey dad, just tell him you're sorry!" The tension in the air rose. Jeep could be very native at times. What was 'I'm sorry' going to do anyways?

Bob closed his eyes tightly as if preparing himself to be shot dead.

"Hey, hey, hey! Son, son. Now I'm sure you don't want to go spilling blood for no good reason," Percy came running out from the diner, holding his arms in front of him. "In front of all these decent people. Now what do you say? By letting Bob go and you'll be on your way, nice and easy." Bob's frown deepen and looked like he was about to burst into tears.

"Please," Michael turned his eyes to me as I took a small step forward, Kathy still in my arms.

"Tiff-" I gave a look to Frank that told him to shut up. He did.

"Don't, don't, kill him. I have my little sister here and I'm positive you don't want a child to see someone killed. So, please let Bob go, please." We stared at each other for a good while. My breathe came out uneven and my heart was beating a hundred miles per hour. I stood there hoping no more blood would be shed. I don't think I could take it.

Michael looked at us for a good minute, as if deciding whether to let Bob live or die, before turning towards the road, with the gun still pointed at Bob. "They're here."


	5. Warmth

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The Phoenix

**-dusklockheart-**

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**Disclaimer**: I don't own Legion or its characters, however, I do own my original characters, Tiffany, Kathy, and Frank.

**Author's Note**: Blahhhh. Summer's finally here! You'd think I'd have all the time in the world to work on this story, which I probably do, BUT, I now have a summer job(Heaven help me), where I don't get paid.-shoots self- Luckily, I do have time to plan out the rest of the story while I deal with screaming little kids!... Oh, this is going to be one LONG summer. This chapter is a bit confusing but it will make sense later, I promise!

WTF? 11 Favorites and 30 Alerts? I can't believe you people actually like this crap. When I started The Phoenix I didn't think anyone would like it. What's wrong with you guys? Just kidding, I love you guys, even if you're all crazy. :D Still, I love reviews cause they tell me what I'm doing wrong and how I can improve because I do want this story to be the best I can make it. :3

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**Chapter Four**

**Warmth**

_Angels were protectors of humanity since the dawn of creation, when God first made Adam and Eve. In the beginning, God had created Angels in His own likeness. One of His favorites, was named Lucifer. His named meant 'Light Giver' or 'Light Bearer'. Truly, he was one of the most beautiful Archangels to have been created. There were three archangels in Heaven. Michael, the first angel ever to be created by God; his name means, 'Who is like God?'. Gabriel, the messenger of God; his name means, 'God is my strong hero'. And the final Archangel created by God was Lucifer._

_In time Lucifer began lusting for the power God possessed. His fellow brothers warned him to cease his foolish desires. Lucifer believed that it should be him who controlled everything, not God. He wanted the power and the control all for himself. God noticed Lucifer's sudden rebellion against Him, because of this, He ordered Michael to cast Lucifer down to Hell. With a heavy heart, Michael fought against his once brother and won. He took Lucifer and damned him into Hell._

_Time after time, Lucifer attempted to escape from Hell. Each time, God prevented him from doing so._

_It was after Lucifer had been banned from Heaven that God created Adam and Eve. Filled with endless jealously over the creatures that had caught God's unconditional love, Lucifer planned their fall from grace._

_God had presented Adam and Eve to all the Angels in Heaven and told them to bow before them. Michael had been the first to bow._

_In an act of love, God allowed Adam and Eve into one of the gardens of Heaven known as the Garden of Eden. His only rule was not to eat any fruit from the forbidden tree. Had they been left alone, the two would have followed God's law without a second thought. Lucifer came in the form of a serpent and presented himself to Eve. Charmed by the odd creature, Eve gladly gave into anything the creature said._

_Lucifer asked why she had not taken any of the fruit from the forbidden tree. Eve answered him that she was not allowed to take any fruit from it. Lucifer then went on to explain that she and Adam were equals to God and that God had not wanted them to know this. He tempted her to take the fruit from the tree which she willing took and later shared with Adam._

_Once God had found out that his beloved Adam and Eve had went against what He asked of them, He banished them from the garden. Soon, God had discovered Lucifer's escape from Hell and how he had caused Adam and Eve to turn away from Him. This time, God had chained Lucifer to Hell and created a creature so powerful that it would be assured that he never escaped from his prison again._

_God designed the creature to have wings longer than any other bird He had originally created. He gave this creature the gift of fire. It would be able to be fully engulfed in flames even as it flew. One of His most brilliant creations He had called it. He gave the magnificent creature a name worth of its beauty; He called it the Phoenix. _

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An AK-47 model now rested on my lap, a M-16 was held up closely to Frank's chest. "This guy's completely crazy." Frank muttered under his breath. "I mean he freaking gives a teenage girl an assault rifle that's used by the military? He's outta his fucking mind."

Michael stood loading his Howa M1500 Tactical Chambered model near the open-able staircase to the roof of the diner. He suddenly looked up at me. I tensed a bit and gripped my gun tighter. He placed his weapon on a nearby table and walked over to where Frank and I were seated. Frank glared up at him. "Tiffany."

"Yeah?"

"Follow me." Before I could even think about standing up, Frank blocked my way with his arm.

"Hold up, Tiff," He turned to Michael. "I don't know who the hell you think you are but my sister isn't going anywhere with you." Two intense stares clashed as I stood in between them. "She's **my** sister. I'm **her **protector. If you need someone to fight, it'll be me." Frank is my brother and I love dearly, but God, he can be such an idiot sometimes. You never talk back to a man that almost just shot a guy for being a smartass to him.

"I don't think you understand the situation we're in, boy-"

"Then why don't you fucking explain it to us, huh?" Oh dear God, he's asking to get his ass handed to him isn't he? From the expression on Michael's face, it wasn't hard to tell that he was not pleased that a teenager was cursing at him and basically calling him a moron.

"Fine then, come with me, boy." Oh crap. I squeezed Frank's hand mentally begging him not to follow Michael. He looked down for a moment and leaned his mouth near my ear.

"Don't worry, Tiffy, I got this." I'm sure you do, you idiot. You're going to get killed by this fucking maniac. He's gonna throw your dead body somewhere where no one will ever find you and I'm going to be alone. YOU'RE going to leave me ALONE. Dispute this racing thoughts I let my own brother follow the man I truly believed would murder him.

I'm so fucked up.

I watched Frank drop his weapon then follow Michael into another part of the diner where Michael was sure I wouldn't be able to hear them. Frank left me alone in a corner of a Godforsaken diner. I'd never felt so damn lonely before. I mean real loneliness. I can manage without my parents, I have for a long time; but I don't think I can make it without my overprotective, loving, and sometimes crazy brother.

He's the only one who actually gives a damn about me in this planet. My parents are obsessed with Kathy. Kathy's too young to understand what's going on. Frank is my other half, he's the other me. He understands who I am and accepts me the way I accept him. We're brother and sister, we hold a piece of each other. Without the other piece, the puzzle would be incomplete. The puzzle needs all the pieces to be fully complete. That's why we need each other. Because together, we become whole.

From my seat in the corner I looked up to where my parents and Kathy were. Dad held Mom in his lap while she hugged Kathy against her chest underneath one of the diner's tables. This time, instead of feeling angry or jealous, I didn't feel anything. I was empty and cold inside.

I wanted to crawl over to them and join in on their warm embrace. I must have been drugged because I started to make my way over to them, completely disgrading my weapon to the floor. Nothing really crossed my mind as I grew closer to them.

I just wanted some of their warmth. Surely, they would share some with their elderly daughter, right? Please let them embrace me. I'm cold. I'm scared. I want a shield too. I want some of Kathy's warmth as well. Is that really such a cruel thing to ask for?

My knees were weak by the time I finally made it under the rotting table. Now, my heart was beating heavily in my chest. I wondered what would happen in the next few seconds. Kathy's face turned from Mom's chest to look at me. As soon as her eyes landed on me, she burst out of Mom's hug and jumped onto me. Tiny arms wrapped themselves around my neck as my own arms rose to tie themselves around her small frame. A spark of heat rose inside of my body.

"That's right, honey, your big sister, Tiffy, loves you." Mom's body leaned on mine as her arms held onto to me. "She's going to protect you from all the bad things." Dad joined in on the hug Kathy had started. Suddenly, I didn't feel as alone anymore. There was still a missing piece, the part where Frank was suppose to be but this warmth was perfect for the moment. I'd never felt happier in my life than this moment. Where everything was _perfect_.

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Yeah, I'm tired of angst and everyone being sad and crying so I made this chapter! :)


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